The 1490 NewsBlog

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Obituary Liz Bryson

Elizabeth E. "Liz" Bryson, 93, of 97 Harrisburg Run died at 5 p.m. Friday (Sept. 20, 2013) in Bradford Manor where she had lived for the past two years.

Born Sept. 9, 1920, in Elkatawa, Ky., she was the daughter of Thomas H. and Mary Catherine Fraley.

During World War II, she was a "Rosie the Riveter," working at a company in Cincinnati, Ohio, and at Dresser Manufacturing in Bradford.

She grew up in the hills of Kentucky but left to join her family many of whom had moved to Bradford to find work during the oil boom.

She worked as a waitress at various restaurants in Bradford including the Keystone Restaurant, the Main Street Diner, and Thomases restaurant. Later, she worked at W.R. Case Cutlery for many years, retiring in 1982.

She married Kay O. Bryson on Oct. 28, 1967, in Limestone, N.Y. He died in 1985.

Lizzie, who never lost her Kentucky accent despite living in Bradford more than 50 years, was renowned in the family for her home-cooked meals especially her famous chicken and dumplings and blackberry pie.

She also liked to can vegetables from her garden, quilt and knit, loved to read, and was an avid walker.

She adored her little dog, Pete.

Lizzie was truly one of a kind, even as she got older: It was only about five years ago that she chased a black bear off her porch by hitting it in the nose with a broom.

She is survived by a son, Shelby (Marty) Wilder of Bradford; a daughter, Phyllis (Harvey) Kerstetter of Kingwood, W.Va.; stepson, Robert (Linda) Bryson of Valley Center, Calif.; a stepdaughter, Ruth Ann "Debby" Sullivan of Templeton, Calif.; two grandchildren, Lindsay Wilder of Lakeland, Fla., and David Kerstetter of Kingwood; a great-grandson, Trace Petersen of Lakeland; two sisters, Ann (Tom) Morris of Bradford; June Grove in Texas; three brothers, Charles in Black Creek, N.Y., Troy (Betty) of Morristown, Tenn., Decorsey (Beulah) Fraley of Paris, Ky.; and many nieces and nephews.

Along with her husband and parents, she was preceded in death by three brothers, Raymond, Jack and Jim Fraley; and a sister, Alma Wainbright.

Friends may call from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. Monday at the Mascho Funeral Home where funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday with the Rev. Robert Brest, pastor of the First Free Methodist Church, officiating. Burial will be in McKean Memorial Park, Lafayette.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial to the charity of the donor's choice.

Funeral arrangements are entrusted to the care of the Mascho Funeral Home, Inc.